Manny Ramirez Reports to Round Rock

Updated: Friday, July 5 2013, 12:13 AM CDT

Thursday, Manny Ramirez reported to the Round Rock Express, Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers, after signing a minor league contract with the club.

Ramirez, 41, ranks 14th all-time on Major League Baseball's home run list with 555 career blasts. However, he has not played in a MLB game since April 2011 and hasn't homered in one since September 2010. Since his last major league home run, Ramirez has signed with three different teams, been suspended for performance enhancing drugs, retired, unretired and played in Taiwan.

"I want to thank God for this opportunity," Ramirez told reporters Thursday. "I never thought I was going to get another chance, but God is good and I'm here. Like I've always said, you've got to go through the fire first and then when you come out, that's when the blessing comes. I went through a tough time, I learned from it, and now I'm moving on."

Manager Bobby Jones thinks Manny's mind is in the right place. "Here's a guy that can probably do anything he wants to do, but he loves playing," said Jones. "He wants to try it again and hopefully it works out for him."

Ramirez has yet to be activated by the Express. He will workout with the team for a few days before joining the active roster. Manny says he expects to be game-ready by Sunday or Monday. Round Rock's current home stand runs through Wednesday.

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